Telecom Order CRTC 2016-405

PDF version

Ottawa, 13 October 2016

File number: Tariff Notice 7505

Bell Canada – Application to transfer a portion of Télébec, Limited Partnership's Château-Richer exchange to Bell Canada's Boischatel exchange

Application

1. The Commission received an application from Bell Canada, dated 27 July 2016, in which the company proposed revisions to its Exchange Services Tariff to introduce item 380 – Boischatel – Service Area.
2. Specifically, Bell Canada proposed to transfer a portion of Télébec, Limited Partnership's (Télébec) Château-Richer exchange to Bell Canada's Boischatel exchange, which is adjacent to the Château-Richer exchange. Bell Canada proposed that all residential and business customers within the defined geographic area be served from its Boischatel central office and included in the Boischatel exchange area boundary.
3. Bell Canada stated that there are currently no customers in the defined service area but that development within the service area had begun. The company noted that Télébec had concurrently filed Tariff Notice 497 reflecting the proposed service area transfer.
4. Bell Canada stated that there would be no impact of the proposed transfer on the two competitive local exchange carriers (CLECs) that operate in both the Boischatel and Château-Richer exchanges, Téliphone Navigata-Westel Communication Inc. (TNW) and Videotron G.P. (Videotron), since there are no customers in the service area to be transferred. Bell Canada indicated that it was, however, notifying both CLECs of the proposed change and that it would work with them to address any issues that may arise. Bell Canada submitted that the two CLECs could use their existing interconnection arrangements with Bell Canada to serve customers in the service area.
5. In Telecom Order 2016-315, the Commission approved Bell Canada's and Télébec's applications on an interim basis.
6. The Commission received an intervention regarding Bell Canada's application from Quebecor Media Inc. on behalf of Videotron.
7. Videotron stated that it did not oppose the application since it had no subscribers in the service area to be transferred. It submitted, however, that changes to the ILECs' exchange boundaries can have a direct impact on CLECs and their subscribers, and that ILECs should therefore provide notice to other service providers operating in an exchange at least six months in advance of future amendments to exchange boundaries, pursuant to Telecom Letter Decision 94-11.
8. The public record of this proceeding, which closed on 26 August 2016, is available on the Commission's website at www.crtc.gc.ca or by using the file number provided above.

Commission's analysis and determinations

9. In Telecom Letter Decision 94-11, the Commission considered that all changes that affect a competitor's use or potential use of bottleneck functions^{Footnote 1} should require notification, and that notification should generally be given at the time a telephone company makes the decision to proceed with a change, or six months before the proposed change, whichever is earlier. The Commission noted that it is open to any interested party to apply to the Commission for a determination should it consider that it was given inadequate notice in any particular case.
10. Although development in the service area has begun, since in this case, there are currently no customers in the service area and there will not be any customers until the development work is sufficiently advanced, Bell Canada's notice of the change to TNW and Videotron is sufficient and consistent with the intent of the notification requirements set out in Telecom Letter Decision 94-11.
11. No service provider objected to Bell Canada's application. As well, Télébec's Tariff Notice 497, which the Commission has also approved today in Telecom Order 2016-404, reflects the changes proposed in Bell Canada's application.
12. Accordingly, the Commission approves on a final basis Bell Canada's application, effective the date of this order. The Commission directs Bell Canada to issue revised tariff pages^{Footnote 2} within 10 days of the date of this order.

Secretary General

Related documents

• Telecom Order CRTC 2016-404, 13 October 2016
• Telecom Order CRTC 2016-315, 8 August 2016
• Telecom Letter Decision CRTC 94-11, 4 November 1994

Date modified:

2016-10-13